The Faction of Courage Pt 2
by Teagie227
Summary: NOT a sequel to original FOC. All Knockout ever really wanted was the promise of a better Cybertron. Turns out Megatron couldn't give him that. But it was too late to bail out, and then the Decepticon regime finally fell, leaving the good doctor alone and with one question, "What now?"
1. Chapter 1

**This is not a sequel to the original Faction of Courage, more like a "The war ended, what now?" type of thing. Knockout has always been my favorite character, and I always wondered, 'Okay, obviously the Autobots are going to win the war, but what will happen to the survivng Decepticons?' Once I'm done with this one, I'll probably do Starscream next.**

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Knockout loved to race in Wales. That's where he usually went nowadays. His opponents were rarely snobbish or rude, they were just people that loved cars having a good time. And now that Megatron and Soundwave were dead, and Starscream had made himself an obscurity, the Decepticons had scattered. He no longer had to stay near the Nemesis at all times, and all he had to do now was hang around abandoned underground caverns beneath Cardiff, track the progress of natural Energon deposits in the UK, -since he could no longer bridge himself anywhere he chose, he had to use it in moderation, and cycle which deposits he used-, race around on the outskirts of Caerphilly, and hate the Autobots. He pulled up into a line of waiting and anxious racing cars, all beauties. His alt mode was the only car with the drivers seat on the wrong side. The car next to him rolled down its window he cracked his open a bit. A human female popped her head out and spoke to him.

"Nice car, man." She said, taking her ring off and running the back of her hand across his frame so as to not leave any fingerprints on his paintjob. Not every human he'd encountered was that considerate. "Aston Martin. Pretty." She compliment and he muttered a quiet thanks. Another human female stepped in front of the cars, getting ready to signal go. And unlike Nevada, she wasn't even... erm... 'scantily dressed', as the humans would say. She was all jeans and a form-fitting cable knit jumper. His neighbor wished him good luck and rolled up her window. The race began on the count of three and the cars moved faster than jets, in the dead of night, on the outskirts of Caerphilly. He and his neighbor were nose to noce at the halfway mark, battling for dominance, but barely tapping each other. If he moved over to knock her around, she'd speed up to dodge him or slow down and come ever so close to his rear end. They danced around like that for at least two minutes, hardly tounching, not leaving a ding or a scratch on either, but in the end Knockout one, if only by a spilt second. He pulled further away from his worthy adversary to give them both room to slow down, it took them a quarter mile to do so, and the race managers came walking with his monetary prize of two thousand pounds. He'd acquired at least half a million pounds with all the racing he did, which he didn't have use for, but he kept it around nonetheless, for whatever reason. His opponent pulled up next to him in her sleek, black, and completely impractical racing car and told him congratulations, and that he'd put up quite a race. She then left in the direction of Cardiff, and he waited a while before doing the same, that way he wouldn't be accused of stalking anyone, which on Earth was apperently a huge no-no. It was only 12 AM so he figured he'd stop by Newtown and pick up some energon he'd buried in a hill, so by the time he got back to his underground Cardiff suite, he could recharge during the day, the way he normally did.

Meanwhile, Cadwyn Price drove back to her friends house, taking an old trip down memory lane. Before she'd married a police officer, she and her friend Carys were partners in crime, racing everywhere they could in the UK and splitting the fees. Carys still hadn't settled, it was doubtful she ever would, but she was sick that day, and Cadwyn felt like one more race, just for the hell of it. No one had beat her since she was just starting out until this evening. She smiled to herself, wishing the young man who drove that cherry red Aston Martin the best with his newfound talent. Street racers typically had a very short amount of time when they were welcomed on the track. She turned the car off, hid the keys under the door mat, and jumped into her Saab that she left in the driveway, heading for the flat she shared with her husband Elias. She walked in quietly and he looked up at her from behind the couch backing.

"Where were you so late?" He asked, his voice straining from the angle of his neck turning around.

"I was out, with Carys." She lied.

"Oh, how nice. How's she?"

"She's good. She's uh, she's catching something, I'm afraid."

"Shame."

"Oh, yeah. I think I'm going to go to bed. How late are you staying up?"

"I don't know, I was waiting for you. I'll turn in soon, okay?"

"Sure." She smiled, bent over him and kissed his forhead. "Love you."

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_I shouldn't have stayed up so late._ Elias thought, pulling into a top knotch hiding spot to clock for speeders on a rural road. He waited for about an hour, singing show tunes, feeling like an idiot. No one could hear him, but he was sure if anyone did, he'd become a laughingstock at the station. He quieted down in case anyone radioed him. He stretched out his legs for a minute, when he saw some idiot in a red Aston Martin that looked like he was going at least 20 Kilometers over and driving on the wrong side of the road. He scrambled to his car, checked his clock, and he was, indeed, going at an ungodly speed. Elias turned on his alarm and headed in pursuit. And, judging by the appearance of this scumbag's car, he was in for a highspeed chase. He was sure this bloody think the cheif gave him couldn't possibly keep up with an Aston Martin, but he could lose his job if he didn't at least try.

Knockout split through the air at 125 miles an hour. He didn't even bother to convert that into Kilometers, he had other things on his processor, like shaking this copper on his was doing okay at chasing the Ex-Decepticon, given his car only went up to 120 without starting to shake. He remembered once, Megatron said something about humans being much more resilient than he took them for, especially for the puny fleshlings they are. Knockout bumped his speed up from 125 to 130, the car behind him screaming through the speakers, "THIS IS THE POLICE, PULL OVER IMMEDIATELY." Elias turned on his radio. "This is officer Elias Price, in pursuit of a red Aston Martin license plate, well, it doesn't really have one..." _Great, one more thing I can peg this arsehole with. _He thought. "On highway 75, requesting a blockade at the end of this highway." Knockout picked up the radio frequency and smiled to himself, taking an immediate left exit. Elias radioed again, "Never mind, this chase just made a turn for the worse." The longer he thought about it, the cheesier it sounded. He knew now, if this chase didn't end soon, civilians would be in danger. He slowed down, and Knockout turned into a small village, made a few unpredictable turns, and left off in a different direction. Elias watched him go, and moved back to his position.

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Cadwyn sat at the dining table in the kitchen, waiting for Eli, watching the hot-pot cook, making sure nothing went wrong. She was never a very good cook, reeling out something edible maybe once a week. Eli was much better than her, but he was always working, busting bad guys. He walked in a few moments after her musings, and the hot-pot was tolerable at best.

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Knockout breathed a sigh of relief, and thanked Primus he got away. Right now, the last thing he needed was to be noticed. Who knew how horribly an incident like that could have gone wrong. 'Breaking News! Giant Transforming robot pulled over in Wales!' The Autobots would be all over it in a nanosecond. And that would be seriously, seriously bad.

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"Optimus," Ratchet called. "I'm receiving traces of untapped energon deposits in the Earth-Place called UK." He pronounced UK as 'Uck', and the children giggled. "What's so funny?"

"That would be pronounced 'Yoo-Kay', Ratchet." Miko informed.

"That- is beside the matter. With as much energon in said continent, we could sustain ourselves for a month. And we'll need all we can get, now." Ratchet looked out at team Prime, they had grown since the official defeat of Megatron. They hardly had room, and had to build a new addition to the base just a month ago. Sideswipe, Hot Rod, Smokescreen, huge names in the intergalactic justice business, and they had all been drawn to this planet, to help clean up.

"Very well, we will investigate." Optimus Prime stepped forward to look at the map, dotted blue at least every inch or so, and he wondered how the deposits had never been tracked before.

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**Stay tuned!**


	2. Chapter 2

Optimus Prime took with him Arcee and Hot Rod, one of the new arrivals. There wasn't much leeway for a Decepticon threat anymore, really. But then, there were rogues, and deserters, and Megatron's last minute reinforcment he'd called for. He looked at his Energon Traacker. Ratchet got them off about .5 miles away from where they needed to be. He took a quick look around for a road. But upon not finding one, he asked Arcee to take a look ahead. She was comparitively lighter on her feet, and if she'd be careful, she'd hardly stir any area residents had they been... camping or something. For once, Hot Rod wasn't saying anything. Beyond the crook of rocks they were hidden in, he couldn't see what lay ahead, and even _he_ knew it would be bad for them to be spotted. One, because peoplewould run wild with a story like that, and two, Hot Rod found it annoying when Agent Fowler burst through the door muttering all obscenities this planet had to offer. Normally, the kid talked _a lot. _One time they had to keep Wheeljack from losing his temper. Yet Hot Rod was young, charismatic, and very good at public speaking. _He'd make a good leader, if given the chance._ However, Optimus had already chosen the succession of bots he would relinquish the matrix to if he ever happened to be... extinguished, and Hot Rod was not very high up on that list. Arcee was quick to interrupt his musings as her little head popped up from behind the outcove.

"All clear, sir. There's a clay dirt road not too far from here. It's not too great, but it's better than off-roading it." Optimus nodded and her head dissapeared once again. He and Hot Rod slipped through the entryway to the nook they'd happened to brige in.

"Optimus? What sort of a place is this? Forgive me, I've never been outside of Jasper since I arrived on this planet and I was just wondering. It's kind of... very wet." Hot Rod whispered, struggled to keep up with Prime's larger steps, which were quickly gaining on Arcee.

"This is an Earth-place called Wales. The Decepticons were making their way across this Earth, mining for Energon, sucking each deposit dry, and moving onto the next. They never reached this part of the Earth, and now, we're here to pick up where they left off, I suppose. But we will use this resource in moderation, and give it time to replenish itself before coming back." They reached the road, transforming and heading West on the damp, raw motorway Arcee had found.

"Well, that's good. I could deal with not coming back here for a while, all due respect, I'm gonna be washing dirt off my body for a week."

"Still so obsessed with your appearance?" Arcee made a playful jab at her fellow 'bot.

"Hey, if you can't do it in style, why do it?" Hot Rod joked back.

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Knockout decided to forgo racing tonight. For once he didn't really feel like it. He had a raw peice of Energon in one hand, taking little bites out of it. He laid down on his back and looked at the sky. The constellations were different here. He challenged himself to look for all the constellations of his childhood, trying in vain to find something familiar in someone else's constellations. By some stroke of luck, he managed to find Nominus Tesarus, the Sparkeater-Slayer. He killed many Outlaws and Sparkeaters, as the story goes, until one day, he was killed by the most notorious Crime-Boss Mortillius. And Mortillius was never seen again. Not many bots liked that story, because the bad guy got away and the good guy didn't win. Knockout liked it, though. It was realistic, there were no illusions of indestructible gun toting badass protagonists that could do anything at all. He thought for a moment of Starscream between his musings, and all the things the screechy little mech had done to either affiliation. He'd gone missing, as of the ending of the war. No doubt he had insisted on carrying on his pointless life. Sometimes, Knockout thought, bad bots do bad things. And sometimes they get away with it. Knockout had to sit up after about 5 minutes. He hated to relax, the idea that he could be captured at any moment by his enemies, no matter how improbable it was, made him even more high-strung than he usually was. He did a good job of hiding it on the Nemesis, his anxiety level never showing itself, not even to Magatron, _especially_ not Megatron, who'd had himself convinced he knew everything about everyone. And behind closed doors, Breakdown would sometimes threaten him to take care of himself. He was a doctor. It should have been a given that he could at least keep himself in good health.

A noise stirred him, and a tingling sensation of panic rose from his core, he ducked down quick and listened closely to the younger Autobots exchange witty banter. He heard them transform and he ducked lower to avoid detection.

"Wait." The one called Arcee interrupted almost the very second some other bot he'd never seen was about to open his mouth. "I heard something."

His spark beat a thousand times a second, and he was sure they heard it.

"Whoever is there, I will ask you to come out from your hiding spot, we will not hurt you." Optimus Prime's oh-too-recognizable voice promised their unsees adversary.

Oh, now he didn't beleive that. He ultimatley decided he couldn't possibly defeate three Autobots by himself. They had proven time and time again that not even 50 Decepticon drones could defeat three Autobots. He readied himself to jump, and nimbly lept off the cavern roof, transformed, and began to drive off. Arcee sprinted around the outcropping mound of rock, guns at the ready, and beheld a sight she could hardly believe. She phoned Optimus, who was too far away to shout to without risk of discovery. Despite the circumstantial evidence, people actually did live in this wilderness. "Optimus, it's Knockout. He's made himself a comeback."


	3. Chapter 3

Knockout hurtled down the motorway to Cardiff as fast as his land-bound alt-mode would take him. He knew the Autobots would come looking for him, and as of late, all he really wanted was to be left alone. But he couldn't go on like this, not for the rest of his life. He knew it was only a matter of time before he had to face his former enemies. And he was sure when that day came, if he could prove to Optimus Prime that he wasn't making a nuisance of himself, he'd let Knockout be, because Optimus was a bit more lenient about harmless renegades than Megatron was. But today was not the day for that. Nevermind the fact that all this solitude he'd been left with made him so paranoid he thought the people watching him were being watched. He sped through the inner city streets, dodging in and out of traffic with surgical precision.

Three blocks away, Elias made a quick late night run out to his bins to dump the trash. He heard the deafening roar of some jerk who needed to buy himself a muffler. Eli looked around and saw the car he'd nearly caught the other day for speeding. He rolled his eyes and thought _bloody idiot's gonna get himself or someone else killed one day. _Knockout was beginning to run out of energy too fast. He slowed down in a neighborhood that was almost completely dark to reserve some of the energon he still had in his system. Elias backed up close to his door and watched Knockout pull into an alleyway at the corner of his building. He quickly slipped behind the door and grabbed a crowbar he kept on the coathanger with a sense of dread that this guy was up to no good. Elias crept back towards the alley and heard an odd and foreign soundind noise.

Picking up his feet, he ran over to peek around the corner of his building and saw a fully trasformed Knockout, stretching his joints, looking around to see that no windows were being unshutted nor prying eyes emerging from the cracks in their blinds. Knockout was preparing for a long drive soon. Now that the Autobots knew he was in Wales, he figured he would get some money from his hideout, and leave the rest; it was of no real use to him anyway. Then he'd barge across the water, and drive somewhere far away. Gaza, maybe. Or Praug, he'd even consider St. Petersburg. He'd taken time to familiarize himself with the cities the rumor mill turned out to describe as full of street racers that might as well be professional.

Eli shrunk back behind the corner. _Seriously need to start sleeping better._ He rubbed his eyes profusely, _perhaps I'm starting to become a total nutter. _He looked back at the alley again, but his hallucination was still there. Elias gripped the crowbar tight and issued a battle cry, charging full speed at the Ex-Decepticon. Knockout turned around and tensed up, pointing the guns mounted on his forearms at the human man, who recoiled and tripped over his feet, being knocked to the ground to stare in horror at the Cybertronian before him. Immediately calculating the gravity of what he'd done, letting a human see him and all, and what the possible repurcussions could be if his body was found lifeless in an alleyway with no signs of a cause of death. The Autobots would know it was him. It woudn't be hard to deduce. And given such information by his own cognitive processes, the doctor rolled his optics, transformed, and drove away.

Elias made a quick grab for the crowbar and lept off his bum. Humans, they were so persistent. Knockout left Eli standing alone in the alleyway, waving his crowbar around like a maniac, shouting,

"Oi! Come back here right now so I can give you the what-for you bloody robot-alien whatever-you-are! I am the police!" In response to said action, a sleepy and cranky Cadwyn hung her head out the window, meeting the cold outdoor air in the dead of night, looking very detatched and rather bored.

"Eli!" He stopped and looked at her. She looked around him a bit, looking for running hoodlums or various immature miscreants, and a looked of confusion crossed her face upon finding him alone in the alleyway. "Are you shouting at thin air?"

Eli looked back at the direction Knockout had driven off to, and then back up to his wife, hanging out of the second story window of their bedroom. "Ummm... Yes?"

Cadwyn looked like she wanted to laugh, but tried to act worried. "You need to get some rest, come inside, please?"

He held up a hand and looked around again. "One second babe, just..." He was quite out of breath.

"elias Price, if you don't come to bed right now, I'm having you commited to an asylum." Cadwyn joked. Eli laughed and tried to hide the crowbar behind his body, walking back to the front door. Instead of putting the crowbar behind the front door, he left it just outside the bedroom door. Now he knew, they were not alone in the universe, and he had to protect his family, and any family he was yet to have, more than ever. Because that... whatever it was, was now speeding off into the night, undetected, unchecked, unchallenged, due South. And no one even had a clue. Except him now, but no one would ever beleive that.

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**Thanks for reading and thank you so much for the reveiws and favorites/follows!**

**Everyone bid a fond farewell to the Prices, it's doubtful you'll see them again! But more is yet to come so stay tuned readers!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Dear Guest, *salutes you* at ease, soldier.**

**And since I have payed special homage to the aforementioned guest, I feel it necessary also to give a shout out to Epicenter Six, Kirite, Ask-Dr-Knockout, Andromeda AI, xxIbiralianxx, Adria20, and anyone who takes precious time out of their day to read this story for being made entirely of awesome!**

**And sorry I haven't updated to my usually daily but no wednesdays schedule, I've been very busy. Enjoy!**

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"Optimus, face it, we've lost him." Arcee murmered into her comm link, careful not to stir any inner-city drunkards who had the audacity to walk about at this time of morning with the shock of some mysterious woman on a top-notch motorcycle. It was the last thing she needed.

For a moment Prime didn't speak, and Arcee feared he didn't hear her, but then again, Optimus always did choose his actions carefully. "Very well." He, Arcee, and Hot Rod all caravanned to an empty alleyway and Prime called Ratchet to bridge them back. They then drove into the green light, appearing from seemingly nowhere. They appeared in a moment back at base, only to be met with flocks of curious Autobots, all leaning in close as they could, while still leaving room for the scout team's arrival, to catch a glimpse of the Decepticon they had invariably caught. Soft groans of dissapointment befell the Autobot hub upon finding them empty handed, and a multitude of wagers were thrown about, mostly in Whirl's direction.

Ratchet stepped away from the controls and turned to face his leader. "Optimus, what happened?"

"We lost his trail, Ratchet."

"Umm..." Hot Rod trailed off. "Don't be so sure."

"Oh, do you happen to just psychically know where the degenerate's off to next?" Wheeljack sneered. He never did take too kindly to Hot Rod. The two of them were as close as they could come to textbook examples of polar opposites. Bulkhead quietly reprimanded his close friend about his poor excuse for manners.

"No, but, in case you two," He looked back to his highest authority and SIC. "Didn't notice that I was driving quite a ways behind you, I actually took the time to imprint his precise energy singature on this here tracker that you dropped in your haste. We have his precise imprint. And now, we can track him and bridge to his exact location at the moment of our choosing." Hot Rod finished, and looked at the team, some were in awe, others were unimpressed. However, Wheeljack murmured grudgingly to Bulkhead, "A bit overbearing for my taste but a smart lad, I must admit."

"Good work Hot Rod. We'll go in the morning, to give Knockout time to come off his guard."

"Alright everyone, withdraw for the night. Tomorrow, we're going Decepticon-hunting."

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Hot Rod flipped about his knife. Gun or no gun, he was constantly equipped with a knife, and he loved to play with it. By cruel lamplight he watched the way the light played of the blade, reflecting and warping his likeness in the dimness of the room he'd shared with Sunstreaker. Sunstreaker hated noise. And light. Had Hot Rod possessed a source of light any more powerful, Sunny would most definitely have taken the liberty of waking up and attempting to tear Hot Rod's spark casing out.

He wasn't looking forward to ambushing the Decepticon they'd seen today. Perhaps the rest of his team did not, but he remembered the look of horror on his face. And even more, he was alone. It probably meant nothing to the others, that acute sense of dread.

Knockout rode on the ferry across the water to mainland Europe, mentally willing it to go faster. However, ferries were least designed to cut through the water at high speeds. He was itching to get off. He supposed the confounded Autobots would come looking around for him and transforming and whatnot, making themselves vulnerable and bothering countryfolk in various remote locations. Upon reaching the dock, Knockout peeled off into the rising sun, forwent Paris, no energon, but found enough for at least a few weeks in Bremin, Germany. Knowing not where he should go first to look for an outlet for his little hobby, or any inner city accomidation, he rested in a cavern. Afterall, it was the first day. However, in a moment of intercession, he concluded this planet really had far more caverns than was good for it. He lay flat on his back, shifted a little, and went to recharge.

The next morning, just as the former medical officer was stirring, the most Atuobots he'd ever seen in his entire life stood, freshly bridged, by the entrance of his sanctuary. They looked rapidly about, and decided that when all else fails: do something outrageously stupid and dangerous. He drove headlong into the mass of bots, through the bridge, tore through their base and eluded the dogooders once again. He cut through the dry Nevada air and mused to himself thathe actually missed this place, as unbeleivable as the fact was. But this game of cat and mouse was getting old, though. And he figured it was high time he stopped running from this unpreventable confrontation.

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**As I mentioned before, this game of cat and mouse is getting old, even for me. Sorry about that, but something else will happen in the next chapter I promise! Keep on trucking lovely readers!**

**For whatever reason these chapters keep getting shorter and shorter... I'll fix that...**


	5. Chapter 5

Knockout perched atop the right side of a canyon the Decepticon's Warship had once ceremoniously been docked for the majority of it's time. He shifted his position, getting used to the oppressive heat and unmatchably dry conditions. Even in the evening, the climate was inhospitable at any rate at all. How did the humans cope? It was awful. He was used to the dampened air of Britian, arguably one of the wettest places on the Earth, so this Nevada air was drying out his circuits and making him ache. However, that was the least of his problems. Across the little canyon he could see the distant figure of a vehicle approaching the lookout. The sun was setting behind him. He dodged behind a rock, quick, attempting to dismiss the disturbance as some local young lovers out to watch the sunset and be romantic and... gushy. Humans were disgusting. Of course, it wasn't. It was some annoying Autobot. At least he was alone, it was doubtful he knew Knockout was there, perhaps if he was very quiet and didn't move at all...

"You there!" Scrap. "I know you're there." Some young bot called from across the chasm. "Might as well come out."

Knockout rolled his optics in exasperation. "The second I come out from behind this rock you'll ambush me, I know." He called out.

"No, I brought the tracker with me. No one knows you're here, and no one knows I'm here. You think I'd let everyone else get in on the action while I'm across this canyon?" Knockout came up to the edge of his side again and sat. "Show it to me." The young bot did so, squinting his optics against the sun, and the silhouette of the Decepicon CMO nodded, convinced, somewhat. They sat there for a few minutes just staring at the other suspiciously. "Why haven't you tried to arrest me yet?"

"You're unarmed. Ultra Magnus would have my throat if he ever found out I tried to arrest you without knowing your crimes which, obviously, you possess, but I am unaware of any of them. So here we are, and I was just curious. I've never seen a Decepticon up close before. Except for Drift. But sometimes he hardly counts... Anyway, I come here every evening if I can help it."

"I'd hardly call this up close."

"Why'd you come back?" Hot Rod knew associating with a Decepticon was a bad idea, no matter how harmless he seemed, but him and his damned curiosity were determined to get the little red and prange mech killed one day, he was sure. And you know what? He was okay with that.

Knockout shrugged. It bothered Hot Rod that he couldn't see the 'Con. "The opportunity presented itself."

"Are you going to find Starscream?" Hot Rod shuddered. "I've heard about him, that Starscream. He and his seekers..."

"Primus, no. Now, get lost, kid."

"You know, we will find you." Hot Rod didn't threaten, but simply stated the fact. "One day, you won't be able to run away anymore. And when we do, out of curiosity, what will you say?"

Knockout smirked. "Spoilers."

"I doubt it." Hot Rod stood.

"Well, if there's one thing Megatron taught me it's that when you plan for things too extensively, someone always shows up and starts shooting at your foot soldiers."

"So, in layman's terms, you're going to wing it and hope for the best." It wouldn't have bothered Hot Rod, it was something the young Autobot did on a daily basis.

"Pretty much." Knockout watched the young Autobot nod, gather up his tracker and drive away. "Idiot."

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"Where've you been off to?" Ultra Magnus was always like this, always so interrogatory. Everyone's potential for trouble-making were, in his eyes, off the scale. Even the original bots of team Prime. Even his sparkmate. Poor creature must have been delusional. She was gone now, though. Didn't last very long.

"I was just... out." Hot Rod explained lamely.

"With the tracker?" Magnus raised an optic ridge, and save such a motion did not budge in the least.

"Umm... Yes?"

"Mhmm..." Magnus mused, coming to stand in front of the younger mech, standing at twice his height. "And I suppose you weren't at all up to no good?"

"Can you ask me that again without the double negative?"

"What were you doing out with the tracker?" He asked.

Hot Rod dismissed his teammate's concern with a deft flick of the wrist, he placed the tracker gently on a counter near the main command of computers for later use. "You know, I always used to tell Jetstorm that, when this war was over, and all the craziness had settled that I'd make friends with a Decepticon. Because, I mean, they can't all be crazy, can they?" Hot Rod looked up at the larger mech. He said nothing except,

"You always have Drift."

"Oh, Drift got over that stuff a long time ago. He hardly holds any faulty traits anymore."

"And that's exactly the way I like to keep it." Hot Rod mused over the mech standing before him. Rigid, opaque, and utterly confusing, Magnus talked around subjects too often and avoided anything that would comprimise his omnipresent stoicism. How very Ex-Copper of him. Although that was exactly to be expected, given that's what he was.

"Ah, Magnus, lighten up. You're always so static in the way you veiw things. The war's over, it's a new universe now. Can't you bend for once?"

Magnus shrugged off his words and went off, probably to be alone, or find someone else who was brave enough to tolerate him. Sometimes he was kind of a buzzkill.


	6. Chapter 6

Knockout walked alone in the forest now. It had been weeks since he'd last seen an Autobot. They most assuredly had more important things to tend to, so he therefore moved about rather freely, all the caution with which he'd checked his every step a week ago had dissapated the longer the Autobots had put off trying to chase him down. And now as he came to a clearing he stopped and sat on the ground for a while, wondering what exactly it was he needed to do with himself. Oh, he was suffering from the worst case of acute boredom he'd ever experienced indeed. Behind him, a barely audible shift of movement was heard behind him, on a particularly large outcrop of rock. The moment he dismissed as a squirrel, he looked up and came face to face with an all too familiar purple and black leg, ready to strike him atop his head. He leapt up in astonishment and in a quick attempt to refute the offending appendage to face Airachnid. His optics flitted quickly about his periphary, looking for his backup, and the realisation hit him like a train. He didn't have any.

"Ah. What's this I see? Poor little Knockout, caught off his guard." Her condescending voice always did drive him mad. He moved slowly and with deliberation, checking each step like the jerk of a chain. She looked half ready to pounce at him, he energized the guns mounted on him and aimed them at her. "It's so nice to see you again, doctor, really it is."

"Why are you here?"

"Ooh. Whay so combative? The thing is, I'm waiting for someone. Or, shall I say, someones." She chuckled dryly and came down from the rock. This was always her way. Conjuring up mischief and being the source of a few minor setbacks, not really doing anything of any real importance yet for some reason, she was still dangerous. He remembered Breakdown.

"You are responsible for the death of someone I like, that is not a safe place for you to stand." Since that day, he'd never liked her. His voice shook with anger and he could hardly contain himself. They never found Breakdown's body.

**(A/N: Warning. Stream of Conciousness... Kinda)**

_**The year of the death of Breakdown**_

_Sir I have some bad news. _The desk and the chair werecreaking and the turmoil of the ship quiet. Toys with the little surgery tools and says nothing. He listens to the ticking of the clock at his workstation and the Vehicon sees the young medic tense at _Breakdown's dead. _being interrupted at such an hour. _What? I'm sorry sir, I'm so, so sorry to have to say. _Well, what is it? _It to you but it's true._ Knockout sat, staring at the empty wall. Empty. Well, looks like all good things really do come to an end. The universe'll be a darker place without you, my friend.

At the present day, Airachnid smiled. "Where do you suggest I stand, little defenseless doctor?" She sneered.

And the Autobots brudged in on quite a scene.

"Oh, look, dear. Company." And Knockout didn't even so much look as the Autobot. Hard as it was, he kept his optics and guns both trained on Airachnid.

"Airachnid!" The one called Arcee exclaimed all too dramatically. Femmes. "Where's the Iacon relic?"

"I've hidden it." Of course she did. "Somewhere you'll never find it." As deftly as ever, the little spider dodged the Autobots' well-trained fire, and creeped away, off to somewhere where she could watch the scramble and still ensure her safety.

Knockout relaxed a little, and the Autobots' turned to him, still armed, whilst Arcee said,  
"Optimus, if I know anything about Airachnid it's that she's very good at hiding things. We should split up."

"Wait." Knockout said, and the party of Autobots gave him confused looks. "That's how she hunts. Don't split up. I can do this." He turned his back and started to think.

"He's right though." Arcee whispered.

_Alright, think. You have one chance. They'll either think you an ally, or an adversary. Go. Okay, so she a spider. She's a spider who can burrow underground. Do you see any unnatural holes? No? Okay. The relic must be close, or she wouldn't be waiting here. She can get a lot of places others can't. There are still places she can't get. Maybe she threw the relic inside one of those places? No, shut up, that's not important, if she did, you would be able to see it. You're an idiot Knockout. Stop, focus... Count those little crevices out and that leaves... the high up areas, yet even up there I could see it so..._

He climbed to the top of the mountain, the Autobots behind him tense, fearing they might lose the doctor again. At the top, in the least detectable area, was a hole big enough for him to fit through, upon entering it, he found the object in question and came back to the top of the mound, and promptly threw the relic to Optimus Prime. He heard a frustrated noise that was Airachnid's. Prime gave him a respectful nod, and the groundbridge was open to team Prime. But Knockout pleaded, "Wait."

**O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O**

**I really liked writing that bit! And I did it because I always found it a bit odd that when Airachnid was up to her little antics such as these, the characters did this mad scramble and got themselves assulted to kingdom come instead of using the one thing God (or Primus) gave them for problems like this to think. It was obvious to me where Jack's mum was. But instead of thinking, he ran around like a maniac. Pisses me off.**

**Anyway! Stay tuned for more awesome? And thanks for all the support in the form of reviews and favs and follows! You guys are awesome!**


	7. Chapter 7

"Will you take me with you?" The reds medic asked with little expression save a pity inducing frown. He shifted uncomfortably. Sometimes, he wasn't very good with words when nervous. He rubbed the back of his neck anxiously. This was going to be the most humiliating day of his life.

"Why would we do that?" Bulkhead seemed genuinely confused.

"Wait, Bulkhead." Prime directed.

"It's just that I figure it's time I stop running away, now. Because there's isn't any purpose to it anymore." He kicked his feet nervously. He died the day the Autobots blew up the Nemesis. He was about to head out that day, about to look for some other relic, alone. He was half bridged when it exploded. They somehow had enough fire power, he didn't ask why. The fire and the force pushed him the rest of the way through and he was far north, alone and leaking energon out of every crevice he could think of. He drove as much as he could, and in the home stretch, had to walk and reserve some energy. Flat out on the desert plain, there lay the still smoking ruins of the Nemesis. He never saw it happen. He looked at all the crews dead. He was very weak and he saw Megatron's body.

He slowly picked his way over. It certainly seemed lifeless. He was still a doctor, and he kneeled hard and fast on one knee. He put one audioreceptors to his chest and listened for a spark beat. There was none. He could hardly remember what one sounded like, even. He never even heard his own. He figured no bot ever deliberatley listened for their own spark beat, much less another's. But at that moment, he wished he had. Because every moment he forgot to listen to the one sign of true life a Cybertronian showed, the total grew exponentially of time that had passed and had been wasted. Seconds ticking away from his life that he didn't hear. And now the multitude of seconds that belonged to the hundreds of lives that lay around on the plain were gone. And no one even saw them go.

The Autobots weren't the only ones that ever suffered loss.

He threw himself on the hot dust to die with the others, but, by Primus, it wasn't his time. And now here he was, grovelling atop a lame excuse for a mountain to the most famous of Primes.

"And what would you do?" Of course, Arcee was the most skeptical and her entire body was tensed.

"I said once, that I was better at breaking them than fixing them. However, my skills as a medic are hardly trifling I... could work beneath your chief medical officer, maybe." He slid down the slope uneasily and came a little closer.

"And what exactly do you ask for in return?" Prime turned to face the smaller mech full on. He was almost as imposing as Megatron was. It must come naturally to leaders, he thought. He mused to himself that that wasn't true.

"What I wanted from the very beginning. The promise of a better Cybertron. As we all know, that, is no longer a factor. So what I want now is to _start over._"

"Optimus, what's going on over there?" Ratchet was getting cranky.

"In a moment, Ratchet." Prime stalled. "Very well, you can come back with us. But you get one strike, Knockout."

O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O

Hot Rod was glad the 'Con was able to come up with some off the cuff persuasion. It obviously appealed to the pathos of Optimus Prime. Which, sometimes, wasn't very easy to do. He kept to a corner, by himself, and after Prime told the company everything would be explained the next morning, stuck rather close to Optimus for a short while and Hot Rod could see why, given to some of the positively murderous looks he was getting. And, for a majority of the night, it almost looked like Knockout was a getting a breifing from Ratchet. After a little tension settled, most everyone dissapated to their respective extensions. Hot Rod rarely slept, he was one of the few still awake. Knockout stayed in his corner after Ratchet left. Optimus Prime made to leave the main room of the hub.

"Optimus." Knockout called. The named leader tunred in the doorway but didn't back up his steps. "It was a lie, wasn't it? The promise of a better Cybertron?" He half-laughed and slumped a little, loosing the reserve and upright position he'd quite ardently attained for this entire half of the day. "No one could ever have made it better."

**O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O**

**So sorry for the absolutely incorrigible lack of a word count in this chapter. I feel bad about myself but that's okay, I'm just not feeling the whole thousand word chapter thing...**

**Is it just me or are these chapters steadily decreasing in length as the story progresses? I'm an idiot.**

**Thanks for the everything you guys!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Sorry, you guys. I'm afraid I have to put this story on hiatus. I just honestly have absolutely no idea where to take this from here. But perhaps one day soon I will get my arse in gear and replace this slot with an actual chapter. I never like to write more than one story at a time, and I've been running dry on ideas for this and overflowing in an unimaginable abundance with ideas for other fandoms. Again, my sincerest apologies. For now, this story will be marked complete, and labeled as on hiatus in the summary. Unless, of course, this is indeed a good place to stop. If just one person tells me that, I will most likely delete this so called "chapter" all together. I think, perhaps, I'm going to star a Hunchback of Notre Dame fic next, if anyone's interested.**


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